SHIGEN! What? You’ve never heard of it? I can’t believe it. For those that have, I can imagine how excited you must be at just hearing the name. For those that haven’t, Shigen are a combination of Shrimp, Chicken, and Bacon. Now two thoughts are probably going through your head; how do you put all that together? And, what is so special about that? Both excellent questions! The first is rather easy to explain but, the second is what is discovered through the experience of creating and consuming them.

To make these delicious little beauties you are going to need to acquire some peeled and deveined “16-20″ Shrimp. (16-20 refers to the size of the shrimp and in this case means you will get 16-20 per pound.) You will then need to get some chicken meat, it can be breast meat or thigh meat, doesn’t matter but it needs to be cut up into 1 inch cubes. After that there is the bacon! I myself prefer a nice thick cut bacon but you can use whichever you like the best. Also you will want a box of tooth picks, your favorite seasonings and some BBQ Sauce or Cocktail Sauce. That’s all you need to make your Shigen!

Now, you are on the way to making some of your very own! But, “what’s next?” you ask. Simple!

Take the chicken, dump it in a bowl along with your favorite seasonings this could be a rub or marinade or just about anything you can dream up, and set the chicken off to the side. Next, take out your shrimp and cut almost all the way through along the vein. If you see blood, you have cut through too far and may want to go get a Bandaid. Once all your shrimp are ready, place a piece of chicken in the deeply cut vein, take a piece of bacon and wrap it all the way around the shrimp and the chicken, then skewer it with a toothpick to hold the whole works in place. Cut off any excess bacon, take the scrap piece, lay it next to the remaining bacon and cut that much off from the rest so now you won’t have to do anymore trimming. Repeat the process until you either run out of shrimp or chicken, whichever comes first. (I have usually found that about 3 chicken breasts will make it through a package of shrimp.)

Now, all that is left to cook them, “but how?” you ask. “Shrimp are one of the most delicate things to cook in the world!” you say. First, take a deep breath! It’s going to be okay. If you have a smoker, that is great, just fire it up to about 250. If you don’t, no problem! Fire up your grill whether it be charcoal or gas. But, if it’s charcoal, have your coals on only one side, and if it’s gas, only have one of the burners going. Now that we have everything warmed up and ready to go.

You’re going to place your Shigen on the side without the flame directly under it. For those who have never done this before, it’s what they call in-direct cooking and it is one of the best ways to cook up stuff without charring it to a crisp. Your Shigen will take anywhere from 30-40 minutes to cook. In general you want to see that the shrimp has turned pink and the chicken is white, bacon crispness is going to be to your preference but, I’ve found that when it’s just got a little crisp on the edge is when they are the best. All that is left now is to take them off your grill or smoker, plate them up with some sauce and serve! If you happened to leave the tails on, you can pull the toothpicks out and serve them that way. This is great when you don’t want to find a hundred toothpicks all over your yard the next morning.

Now, there are some of you that are seasoned outdoor cooking pros or may just have a lot of cooking experience and are wondering if this can really be for real, after all, shrimp is very delicate, chicken cooks slower than shrimp, and bacon will never be crispy before the shrimp turns into something resembling an eraser. These my friends are all vital concerns and understandable, so, let me try to explain why it all works. We put the seasonings on the chicken instead of the shrimp because if you salt shrimp it dries up even faster than it normally would because of salt causing it to give off water but, because we put it on the chicken, the shrimp gets extra moisture from the chicken, keeping it from drying out. Also, salt has a tendency to work as a heat conductor so the chicken draws in heat faster and cooks faster because of it. The bacon works as an insulator for the shrimp by giving it a fat barrier from the heat so the bacon is allowed to get a crisp on it while protecting the delicate flavors of the shrimp. Not to mention, everything just tastes better with bacon. And that, my friends is the magic behind how the Shigen works.

Get outside fire up that grill or smoker and cook up a mess of Shigen not only will you wow your friends but their taste buds as well!

You can find Tom & Big Butz BBQ on most social media outlets like Twitter (@bigbutzbbq) & Facebook. He’s got a great blog at: http://bigbutzbbqsauce.net Big Butz BBQ sauce is also widely available and highly prized by those who try it – find Tom and get some for yourself!

Green Leaf BBQ is officially open for business in Livermore California. Our new shop is part of Livermore’s historic “Blacksmith Square”. The Brick building offers a great courtyard for our BBQ classes and events. Our neighbors offer local botique wine tasting, olive oil tasting and a tapas style restaurant for anybody visiting the Square. The weather here is great for a backyard BBQ – offering true wine country climate with warm days and cool evenings.

Our shop is open Thursday, Friday and Saturdays from 10:30 am to 7:00 pm.

As always we feature and specialize in The Big Green Egg line of BBQ Smokers. We also carry Green Mountain Grills, Traeger Grills, Weber Grills, and other products from Lodge, OXO, Victorinox/Foschner, Wicked Good and many custom BBQ Spices, Rubs and Sauces from the professional competition circuit that simply are not available in other stores.

Carrie & I were shopping the other day – grocery shopping – our favorite pastime. We were trying to decide what to have for dinners in the week ahead. Understanding that we are in the BBQ industry, we typically choose an assortment of meats that might either provide a learning experience, or perhaps fresh material to share. Cornish Game Hens came up last night, and indeed – produced something to share.

Most folks LOVE BBQ Chicken, in one or more of it’s many forms. We serve lots of BBQ Chicken to clients and make many of recommendations to customers looking for a new way to prepare it. One complaint we’ve heard often,” The chicken breasts are just too big” or “We cooked a whole chicken and now we have to store the leftovers – that never get eaten.”

Cornish Game Hens don’t have any of those problems. One hen, split in Half will comfortably feed two people with no leftovers. Even better “SpatchCock” (or a hen with the back cut out and butterflied), but straight hen halves are wonderful.

Here are the Basics of what we did:

Frozen Game Hens – cut in half just like a chicken. One half per person is the appropriate portion.

I tossed (3) Halves in a 2 gallon Zip Lock bag & poured a “Mojo Criollo” Marinade – this is a wonderful citrus based marinade that is traditional in Cuban or Mexican cooking.

Let the hens soak in the marinade for (4) hours – that’s all the time I had in order to get them cooked on time. Let them soak longer if you can.

Get a BBQ or Smoker set up with some BBQ Smoke Wood and plan for “Indirect” heat; adjusting your temps to the 250 Degree range. When the temperature stabilizes, put the hens on the BBQ. I add a water pan to the grill if I am worried about moisture – this is just a metal bread pan filled 2/3 with water & set on the same side as the hens. The pan will steam and add humidity to the cooking chamber. This can be done on ANY BBQ.

I lay the hens on the BBQ grate – setting the thickest (breast) side of the hen towards the fire – I don’t like burnt wing and leg tips.

Let the hens cook for 20 minutes – shake on a mellow BBQ rub once the skin has started to sweat a bit. I used D-Dog’s Maple Rub – very complimentary to poultry.

An hour later, baste on some olive or canola oil, balsamic vinegar & honey mixture that you’ve prepared in the house…this will dilute & emulsify the dry rub that was applied earlier. The color will really come out and begin to look glossy.

Another hour into the cook, your hens should have been on the BBQ for about 2 1/2 hours now – baste with a final BBQ sauce or glaze. Mine was simple sugar, mint, sage & a touch of brown mustard – all mixed together nicely prior to painting the hens…you can use a bottled sauce at this point too…

Things should be VERY close to done – ensure now that the BBQ doesn’t get much hotter than the 250 degrees we’ve talked about – that sugar will burn if it does.

The hens will be done now – and can be pulled off the BBQ. I like to put mine under a foil tent on a platter or other type of “steamer” – this allows the hens to rest while other parts of the meal are finished off.

Enjoy those nice Cornish Game Hens – they should be super juicy & tangy sweet.

We used a Traeger Pellet Grill for this recipe, you can easily replicate this on a Charcoal or Gas grill. The Traeger Pellet Grill is easy & low maintenance – we recommend them.

Thanks for checking out our BBQ blog – I try to come up with stuff that anybody can try with success – We have many of the items mentioned in our online BBQ shop at: www.greenleafbbq.com

I know – this is a shameless plug for our BBQ shop. But, sometimes the information being delivered demands some attention – even if it is from within!

Our BBQ Shop is located at: 21 South Livermore Ave. Livermore, CA in the Historic Blacksmith Square. We regularly have Big Green Eggs on sale and offer prices significantly under retail. Please visit our website for more information at: www.greenleafbbq.com – We can drop ship special orders as well!

Here are 10 of the best reasons ever to invest in a Big Green Egg…

1. They can hover at the magic 250 degree mark for almost 24 hours with a good lump charcoal fire – making the “Low & Slow” style a reality.

2. They are supremely efficient users of fuel – Good charcoal is expensive and getting more so.

3. They can really do a great job as a grill – those temps can easily get to 500 – 700 degrees and stay there for over an hour – if you have a “steak night” for 15 folks, this will come in handy.

4. They look cool.

5. They make you cooler!

6. They will last forever & include a limited LIFETIME warranty – Parts are commonly available and easily replaceable.

8. There is nothing that cannot be cooked to perfection with a little practice of fire management & technique – a VERY forgiving BBQ.

9. Air flow is managed at both ends and the adjustments actually work, unlike junk grills that have air flow vents more for cosmetic reasons.

10. Cooking technique that is learned in a kitchen can easily be applied to this charcoal fired porcelain oven – learn fire technique & the world will be your oyster.

I don’t really need to go on any more – “Backyard Nirvana” is possible and now within reach.

Seriously, these are wonderful BBQ units that will be enjoyed for years…a true investment. Consider renting one from us for $50 a day – we’ll take the rental expense off of your bill should you decide to buy.

Green Leaf BBQ is proud to announce the arrival of our newest BBQ product. “California Vineyard Smoke Woods”. These Oak wood pieces were infused with wine as they assisted in the process of making great California Wines. Green Leaf BBQ has partnered with many wineries to bring you a truly superior BBQ smoke wood. From small cubes to smoke in that gas grill, larger pieces to mix into the charcoal pile on your Weber and longer slats for that stick burning smoker rig.

Reviews have been coming in… John Ruloff, a Big Green Egg Rep. and BBQ competitor in Fairfield Ca. took some with him to the 6th Annual West Coast BBQ Championships this past weekend. Visitors chattered, “The wood was great” others, “With the right amount, the smoke flavor was unique and interesting”, another commented, “something different”.

Recommended Use: Place about 8 pieces on the fire as you are locking in the temperature of the BBQ. By the time things have settled down to the magic 250 +/- degree mark, the pieces should be producing a nice light smoke. Keep in mind, if the pieces are tossed on a huge flaming fire, they will just burn up. The burning isn’t what will give you a unique smoked flavor…so remember those Low & Slow cooking methods. Some folks soak them in more wine, others in water, others go dry. Experiment with what works best for you.

Big Green Egg & Weber WSM & UDS: Toss them or stir the pieces into the charcoal bed and catch the temperature you like. Remember it is easier to capture temps that are rising as the fire is growing – it is difficult to put the brakes on a monster hot fire and bring the temps down.

Weber Kettle: Set up for an indirect fire – add the smoke wood as the temps stabilize around the edges of the fire. I use foil covered bricks down the center of my kettle & make the fire on one side. The bricks radiate heat well – extending and stabilizing the length of a usable fire.

Gas Grill: Fill your smoker box with a handful of the small cubes – get them smoking – not burning – then add your meat. Some people dedicate a burner for the smoke box, it may be easier to moderate the burn/smoke rate to your tastes.

Smoke Note: NEVER try to smoke your food while the BBQ is billowing white smoke, thick white smoke will make your food taste like garbage and it will turn black and sooty. Please wait until there are nice clean wisps of smoke and heat – then add your food. (If your fire lacks oxygen – air flow – there will be continuous white smoke – add some air to stabilize the burning characteristics and clean up that smoke)

I saw this video and thought I’d pass it along. In case you haven’t noticed, I like to focus on techniques that create sound fundamentals. I’m aware that in order to get great BBQ, many additional techniques are advised that can only be applied when the fundamentals have been established. We’ll be adding a few of those expert tricks along the way to truly make great Q.

Notice that this guy uses a Weber WSM to cook these ribs. If a person is using a different style of BBQ, Like a Traeger, Big Green Egg, Horizon Offset or a Gasser etc…keep in mind that the attainable temps may be different and should be accounted for in overall cook time.

Oh yeah, don’t depend on your charcoals flavor – add wood chunks or chips to your BBQ to give it a unique flavor & use a fire starter chimney or paper to light that BBQ — Please no lighter fluid.

We are a small business that wanted to take a fresh approach to the old ways of backyard cooking. You won’t find gas grills, paper plates, plastic forks or lighter fluid in our store. We carry specialty barbecues and smokers that are friendly for our mother earth. Our selection of gourmet sauces, spices and rubs come from award winning locals all over the country.

We are constantly on the lookout for new recipes, products, techniques and new experiences. Monthly events will take place at our store to teach the basic skills in barbecue preparation, cooking, and to just meet new friends. Check out our calendar of events for current demos and classes.

Ask us about our drop-off barbecue catering services….coming soon.

WSM - BBQ Smoker

Green Leaf BBQ strives to take a fresh approach to the old ways of backyard cooking. Barbecue has brought families and friends together for years and we believe that fresh air and great food will always be some of the best things in life. We are a unique retail store that carries specialty barbecues and smokers as well as a large selection of gourmet sauces, rubs and spices that come from award winning locals all over the country.
At Green Leaf BBQ, you won’t find gas grills, disposable products or lighter fluid. Instead, you can find a lineup of efficient barbecues and smokers, high quality cookware and accessories, charcoals that come from companies with sustainable practices and gourmet food products that are all natural.
We offer cooking classes, first fire techniques, new product demos and private instruction. Our goal is to fuel the creative spirit of cooking outdoors by providing the tools to make anyone feel like a gourmet chef.